


Volunteering

by Juli



Series: Days of Summer [24]
Category: CSI: Crime Scene Investigation
Genre: Emotional Hurt/Comfort, Fluff, Multi
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2012-08-25
Updated: 2012-08-25
Packaged: 2017-11-12 21:44:35
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,981
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/495964
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Juli/pseuds/Juli
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
      <p>I'm counting down the days of summer with a fic a day during August.</p>
    </blockquote>





	Volunteering

**Author's Note:**

> I'm counting down the days of summer with a fic a day during August.

“Lindsey, what did you do?”

Nick grinned as Catherine Willows put her hands on her hips and looked expectantly at her daughter. Catherine had given Lindsey permission to wander through the lab one night, asking her mother’s co-workers to volunteer at a fund raising event for her girls’ softball team. Evidently, Catherine hadn’t realized how successful her child had been.

“All I did was ask Uncle Grissom, Warrick, Nick and Greg if they’d work the booth with us today.” Lindsey’s voice wasn’t quite a whine. “I can’t help it if they said yes.”

“It all depends on how you asked,” Catherine warned the girl. “It’s a fund raiser, not a life or death event.”

Nick intervened. “Give the kid a break, Catherine. We’re here and we’re ready to work.” He glanced over to where Greg, wearing headphones, was doing some dance moves to the music. “Well, most of us are.”

“I don’t know.” Warrick disagreed. “I’d give a fair bit to know how she conned Grissom into this. This isn’t exactly his kind of thing.”

‘This’ was a regional baseball tournament and it had a carnival atmosphere to it. Fire stations across the country had baseball teams and competed throughout the summer. Much like college and university teams did, the top teams went to play-offs and Las Vegas always hosted the Western league. Local youth sports programs were offered the chance to organize food booths at the event and it always turned out to be a big money-maker for them. For each hour that a volunteer put in for a specific student, that student received $30 towards the team’s own trip to their regional play-offs, which were in Seattle.

“Lindsey didn’t con me.” Grissom smiled that ghost of a smile of his that made both Nick and Greg crazy. “I’m in support of female sporting activities, even if I’m not much of an athlete myself.”

“So, Cath, what’s the plan?” Nick asked. He snatched Greg by the elbow and tugged on the headphone cord until Greg got a clue and took them off. “We’re yours to command.”

“All right.” Catherine took a deep breath. “Everybody, gather around.”

The CSI team members weren’t the only volunteers; there were a couple of others too. More would arrive later, as the shifts only lasted four hours.

“First, thanks for coming out here today, the soccer program appreciates your support.” Catherine smiled at them all, although her more sincere smile was aimed at her colleagues.

“Nick, you’re on the grill.” She grinned at him. “If anyone should know how to flip a burger, it’s the boy from Texas. Bill, you’re with him.” Bill was one of the non-CSI volunteers, the other was a woman named Cherie. “Warrick, you and Greg are taking orders and handling the money.” Catherine waggled a finger at Greg. “No funny business, mister.”

“Awww. . . .” Greg pouted. “I wanted to cook too.”

Catherine shot a look at Grissom and Nick, clearly seeking support. Nick kept his mouth shut; Greg was actually a good cook. 

“Cooks in public venues have to wear plastic caps.” Grissom pointed out. “Think of what it would do to your hair.”

Nick snorted. It was far more likely that Greg’s spiked hair would poke holes in the protective gear. Still, Grissom’s comment got Greg to stop pouting. 

“That would not be cool.” Greg wrinkled his nose. “Money it is, then.”

“Grissom, you and Cherie will assemble plates. The kids will run them out to the customers.” She looked around. “Any questions?” Seeing there were none, she clapped her hands. “Okay, let’s go.”

Catherine was right, Nick knew his way around a grill. At first, he enjoyed the sizzle of the meat on the hot surface and relished the smell of cooking burgers. As the afternoon went on and the orders came in fast and furious, though, he began to get tired of it. The best part of the chore was that he worked right next to Grissom. Although the three of them worked at the same place, assignments kept them apart more than it brought them to work together.

With his eye for detail, Grissom was a perfect choice for assembling the plates of food. He actually seemed to enjoy it too, given the slight smile on his face. Grissom might be enjoying working with the kids or maybe, like Nick, he just enjoyed the chance to spend time with one of his lovers - one of his lovers. Nick would have enjoyed the volunteer work even more if Greg had been at his side like Grissom was.

To outsiders, they were an unlikely trio. All of their friends and most of their co-workers didn’t mind that they were in a same sex relationship and even the fact that it was a three way relationship didn’t phase most of them. They did live in Vegas, after all, which was the national headquarters of the sexually unusual. No, what threw most of their acquaintances was who was in the threesome. The idea of Nick and Grissom together didn’t raise any eyebrows and the combination Nick and Greg together seemed to be taken for granted. No, it was the combination of Grissom and Greg that received the most questioning. 

It was a fact that Greg and Grissom was direct opposites. Grissom was introverted and enjoyed quiet, solitary pursuits, while Greg was extroverted and, well, loud. Both men were extremely intelligent, however, and compassionate. Grissom was a man who liked to take care of others, to the extent that sometimes Nick felt stifled. Besides, he liked to take care of people too, but Grissom didn’t respond well to mother henning. Having Greg in the mix gave Nick someone to take care of and a second person for Grissom to lavish attention on. As for Greg, he soaked up the attention; sometimes Nick thought maybe he hadn’t gotten enough of it when he was growing up. If so, it was a deficiency that both Nick and Grissom were determined to make up for now.

It was hot in the booth and Nick had finally wrapped a bandana around his head so he wouldn’t sweat into the food. So had Grissom, which was a sight that made Nick laugh.

“You look like Jerry Garcia.” Nick teased, then remembered who he was teasing. “He was a member of - . . . .”

“A founding member of the Grateful Dead.” Grissom finished for him, his eyes crinkling up as he smiled. “I do know some popular culture references, Nicky.”

“Wow.” Nick rested his burger flipping hand for a minute. “You are so sexy when you’re culturally relevant.”

“Hey, fellas.” Warrick’s tense voice cut through the booth. “I think you need to look out for your boy.”

Nick took a look, finding that Greg was no longer behind the counter. From the direction he was, relative to the booth, he must have taken a bathroom break. A large man had pinned him against the wall of the nearby building and Greg did not look happy about it.

Although Nick was the most athletic of the trio, it was Grissom who flew over the booth counter and took off towards Greg. Nick was a close second. He could make out a few words the stranger was saying to Greg, but the ones that got him seeing red were ‘freak,’ ‘tease’ and ‘put up or shut up.’

Before Nick could do anything about it, Grissom had pried the man away from Greg, spinning Greg into Nick’s arms. Before the bully knew what was happening, Grissom had the bigger man on the ground, with his arm in a classic police hold.

“Greg, you okay?” Grissom was eerily calm, while the bully was blustering about Grissom not having the right to mess with him.

“I’m fine.” Greg’s voice was steady, but Nick was holding him tightly and could feel how the younger man shook.

Belatedly, the event security personnel jogged up. “What’s the problem here?”

A crowd had gathered by that time. Warrick stepped forward and, bless him, had the presence to flash his badge. “We’re with the Las Vegas crime lab. This gentleman here began harassing one of our colleagues and it got physical.” 

Nick was grateful that Warrick had been the one to address the security. He had a calm that neither Nick nor Grissom would have been able to handle. It went a long way towards settling the situation. 

Warrick looked at Greg. “Do you want to file charges?”

Greg shook his head. “No. Look, can we just forget that this ever happened?”

Grissom touched Greg gently on the shoulder. “Whatever you want.”

“Hey, is everybody okay?” Catherine’s eyes went directly to Greg. “Greg, I’m so sorry.”

“Not your fault.” Greg smiled at her. “Sorry I messed up Lindsey’s deal.”

“You didn’t, don’t worry about it. In fact,” Catherine glanced down at her watch. “Our shift is up in a couple of minutes and the next volunteers are already here. You guys can take off.”

Over Greg’s head, Nick mouthed the words ‘thank you’ at her. Catherine smiled, but her expression as she looked at Greg was sad.

“Get out of here.” Catherine repeated her urging for them to go. She knew the trio well and knew how badly the two older men would be wanting to coddle their youngest lover.

After a quick round of goodbyes, the three headed for the car. Greg was walking under his own power, his arms wrapped around his torso and his eyes firmly fixed on the ground. Nick decided he didn’t want to wait until they got home to talk about what happened.

Apparently, neither did Greg.

“I don’t know what happened.” Greg suddenly started talking when they reached the car. “I remember the guy when he paid and everything, but I didn’t flirt with him.” Greg looked at them both in concern. Nick hated the insecure look in his eyes almost as much as he did the thought that Greg actually would think that he or Griss would assume he’d led the jerk on.

“Of course you didn’t flirt,” Grissom said firmly. “You were just being your normal, outgoing self. It’s not your fault that it was taken for more than you intended. From what I smelled on him, I suspect that alcohol was involved on his part too.”

“Can we just go home?” Greg’s voice was small. “I just want to forget this ever happened.”

Nick knew it wasn’t as simple as that. Greg hadn’t been attacked – but probably only because Grissom had been so quick to intervene. Even with an effervescent personality like Greg’s, there was bound to be some lingering bad feelings associated with it.

He and Grissom would have to take Greg home and coddle him until he felt better.

“I think next year, when Linds asks us to participate in this shindig, we’ll have to say now.” Nick tried to lighten the atmosphere as he slipped into the backseat with Greg, leaving the driving to Grissom.

“Yeah, I really ruined everything.” Greg looked and sounded dejected.

“No, you didn’t.” Nick reminded him. “Besides, I wasn’t talking about that jerk who grabbed you anyway.”

Greg looked pleasantly surprised. “You weren’t?”

“Heck no.” Nick could see Grissom looking at them in the rear view mirror and he winked at him. “I was already thinking I wouldn’t be volunteering again.”

“Why?”

“All those burgers.” Nick shuddered. “I’m from Texas, but I think it’s going to be years before I can look at another burger again. That’s just pitiful.”

There was laughter in the SUV and Nick relaxed; Greg was already recovering his equilibrium. Hopefully an afternoon of reassurance from his older lovers would go a long way to helping Greg get back to his normal, bouncy self. Unfortunately for Nick, however, he hadn’t really been kidding.

It would be a long, long time before he could face another burger again.

~the end~


End file.
